CBI conducts raids on senior customs officer in Kochi over land scam probe

Kochi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday carried out simultaneous raids targeting Pramod Kumar Savidha, a senior Superintendent with the Customs Preventive wing in Kochi, in connection with an alleged land scam case in Bihar.

Sources said that the coordinated searches were conducted at three locations - Savidha’s office cabin at the Kochi Customs Preventive Office, his residence in Kochi, and his family home in Uttar Pradesh. During the operation, investigators reportedly seized several documents.

According to Customs sources, the action is part of an expanding probe into an alleged fraudulent land scam in Bihar. It is learnt to be linked to a family dispute over land. Investigators suspect that Savidha was involved in complex and unauthorised land transactions. Although the core case is being investigated in Bihar, the trail allegedly led the agency to the senior Customs officer in Kerala.

Meanwhile, Customs sources said that Savidha had officially been transferred out of the department only recently.

“Superintendent Savidha was officially transferred to the GST office just last week,” a senior Customs official said on condition of anonymity. “However, because he had yet to be formally relieved from his duties at the Customs Preventive wing, he was still technically holding his post here. This overlap is why the CBI team had to enter and search his workplace inventory today.”

This is not the first time Savidha has faced scrutiny from law enforcement agencies and departmental authorities. He had earlier come under serious disciplinary action in connection with allegations that he aided a major gold smuggling syndicate operating through Karipur International Airport in Kozhikode.